


Hot for Cash

by Winter_Cakes



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Accidental Domesticity, Ben Solo Needs A Hug, Ben Solo is a Mess, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Financial Domination, Findom, Kylo Ren Has Issues, Masturbation, Miscommunication, Phone Sex, Praise Kink, Size Difference, Slow Burn Rey/Kylo Ren, Touch-Starved, girlfriend experience
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-27
Updated: 2019-12-28
Packaged: 2021-02-26 01:54:58
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,330
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21985486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Winter_Cakes/pseuds/Winter_Cakes
Summary: Rey simply wants to survive the holiday season unscathed in-spite of her pilling bills and lackluster dead-end job at her local cafe. An opportunity arises, one atypical from the usual list of side-jobs; spending time with strangers pretending to be their doting and loving girlfriend seems to be more appealing than getting kicked out of her apartment for late rent.She doesn’t expect Ben Solo and his kinky requests to ping on her rader. She wasn’t planning to sleep with him.Well, that was the initial plan anyway.
Relationships: Kylo Ren/Rey, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 20
Kudos: 92





	1. Zone of Action

**Author's Note:**

> hi ya, i’m been inspired by the absolute bs that Star Wars: TROS left with this burning passion to see Rey/Ben have a better conclusion to their thicc af unresolved sexual tension. hence this dumpster of a story which i’ve made up without an exact plan. please let me know if you want more of this travesty, because i certainly wouldn't mind seeing these lonely-ass mfers bang

* * *

Rey scrounged under the couch, her hand tickled by dust bunnies nestled underneath the piece of furniture that she has been closely acquainted with for the past few months since she had self-exiled herself after she made the dastardly discovery that the cheap Craigslist mattress she had snagged had some creepy inhabitants (read: mother-kriffing-bed-bugs) hidden inside the folds of the plush material. 

It was disgusting, and she yelled at the inanimate object far longer than she would like to be proud of, and had hauled the dreaded thing down to the dumpster as fast as she humanly could. Well, Finn helped-and yes, he warned her that it was too good to be true for such a deal-but Rey was, by all accounts broke.

Broke that she was living off ramen noodles (topped with an egg for some healthy protein thanks Finn) for her meals - something that she had experienced when she went to the community college for two years - to which she had sworn she would never do again. Not like she had a choice in-the-matter for her current situation.

Rent had to be paid, her electricity and water payments were due, while all she wanted was to skimp on her responsibilities and buy something nice for herself in due to the holiday season. Well, and maybe throw something special for Finn and his maybe-maybe not girlfriend Rose. 

Rey scrunched her nose as the dust particles swept into her nostrils as she retrieved her hand, where clutched against her palm was a few hard metal coins. Not much, but it’ll have to do. Enough for a bus fare at least so she’ll be able to make it to work, and maybe the almost holiday season would coax the customers to add their spare change into the tip jar. Who still wanted to carry the heavy coins anymore these days - hint: it’s Rey, who really wanted that spare change - and she internally cringed at her own desperation. She pushed herself off the ground, and mildly winced as the hardness of the floor pressed against her sore knees. 

She missed yoga - the stretch exercises and flexibility she kept as a routine when she first came to America all starry-eyed and freshly-faced - was no longer an option when all she could do was not collapse on the floor after a full-day shift running around (sorry: she meant briskly walking around the tables in a controlled manner), up ladders trying to get stock and squat down to move products. That was her workout now. Her nice gym clothes were stuffed somewhere in her closet, probably collecting dust. 

God, was there anything in her apartment that didn’t have space, hair and skin particles splattered on her stuff?

With an already irked disposition in the morning, she hastily stuffed her work-issued apron into her ratty backpack, where she had thrown in her keys and wallet the night before. 

" _Shit_ , where is my bloody phone?” 

Rey knelt down, and peered underneath, as every breath mirrored a heightened curse and she felt so done. It was still morning, and she hadn’t even started her shift. She slid her arm against the couch seats - her arm grazed the soft material like butter, all smooth until she hit something hard. Something rectangular.

“Aha! There you are, you darn thing.” Rey exclaimed as she snatched up her most expensive possession. Second to her bike, which currently was chained up due to the wretched weather that had drowned the city streets. Hence, public transport.

With her keys in one hand, she closed her door and gripped her umbrella. The hallway was empty; not unusual, but the pounding rain that pelted against the closest window she glanced at told her enough that today was going to be a rough day. 

Just seven hours. That’s how long she needed to survive before she could come home and just fall into her bed. And let the next day wash over her to do again. 

* * *

“You know. I’m sure you do some Internet modelling. You have a nice enough body for it. Or, like maybe sell used panties.” Kaydel sniffed as she capped a filled cup with a steaming hot peppermint tea concoction the store had offered for the Christmas season. “Hell, maybe you can do some camming. I know a few people who could get you started.” The blonde winked - to the customer or to Rey, the latter was unsure if this warranted a slight grimace across her mouth and eyebrows. 

“Kaydel. I-uh, appreciate the offer, but I rather not have my face with that type of stuff. Not shaming anyone,” Rey hastily added as wiped the milk nozzle down with a slightly wet fabric piece, “but just in case it bites me in the butt.” 

“Your loss.” Kaydel shrugged all well-natured, as she flashed a brilliant smile to the next customer and asked for his order. “You definitely have the potential to be arm-candy on some stupidly wealthy person.” The blonde waved her observation like it was a passing thought. “Anything else for you today?” She cooed to the customer who blankly looked at her with apprehension before he gave a nod to one of the baked goods in the clear glass. 

Rey rolled her shoulders as she used the coffee grinder to make a new batch for the current customer into the filter basket, and tapered it before she returned to the machine with the filled portafilter. With practiced hands, the brunette pressed the button to start the espresso drip. She steamed the cold milk, and watched how the creamy liquid swirled and the air sizzled and spat into the metal jug. There was something that made the process a relaxant to herself, a sequence of steps that she had imprinted on her brain. The routine had been etched enough into the back of eyelids that she could finish this shift in the least amount of pain. 

“You wanna take a break now? It’s quieted down a lot now that the morning rush is done.” Kaydel’s voice broke through the mess of her thoughts, as the blonde tapped a finger on the table to capture a response.

“Oh. Is it already my turn now?” Rey spoke back, and fumbled with the apron until it was finally off her work outfit and onto a nearby chair. “Be back in fifteen.” 

“Don’t sound too excited.” The blonde said as she slipped into Rey’s previous position of being in charge of drinks. 

Huddled against the storeroom was where Rey found herself in the short breath of air allowed, free from unruly customers and barked orders. She fiddled around for some paper and a pen, and jotted down the expected amount for her bills in the upcoming two weeks. The zeros kept appearing, twos and threes at a time, and she punched the numbers in angrily into the calculator as she hotly exhaled in the cramped space. The digits piled up, and the young woman threw her arms up in the air when she came to the conclusion that nothing short of a miracle would pay for her living expenses. 

“I’m going to have to eat cardboard for the next month.” Rey wistfully sobbed into the air as she scrunched the piece of paper into a ball. 

“I hope not. I don’t think cardboard has any nutrients for you.” 

Rey whipped her head around as she sought out the source of the new voice. 

“Morning Rey. You want a granola bar? Rose accidentally bulk-bought a truck-load of them. I’m sick of eating the same honey and almond mix for the past few weeks. You’ll be helping me by taking it out of my hands.” Paige said as she handed the aforementioned snack to her fellow colleague. 

“You’re a saint Paige.” Rey moaned as she unwrapped the bar and bit into it with thinly-veiled glee. “I haven’t had breakfast yet.” 

“I thought so. Budget isn’t looking too hot this month is it?” The black-haired woman pulled off her duffle bag and stacked it in a corner. “What’s the verdict on whether you’ll give up an organ?”

“The closer the deadline gets, the more it seems like a good idea.” Rey joked back, as she threaded her hair through her slightly greasy hair. “Kaydel mentioned I’ll probably be able to pull in some big bucks as a cam-girl or as a trophy-wife.” She gave a snort as she threw the rubbish ball into the bin in one successful swoop. 

“Of course she would.” Paige grinned back as she pulled on her apron. “But I mean, I can totally imagine you doing it.”

Rey cocked her head to the side in amusement, and questioned the response, “Stripping for the camera?”

“Being a trophy-wife. Closet thing you could realistically is become a pretend-girlfriend for someone.” Paige noted absentmindedly as she handled her long black locks into a ponytail. 

“A what?” Rey parroted with softened intrigue in her inflexion. 

“Pretend-girlfriend? It’s something a friend of mine was hired to be once for a family gathering. She had a client who had a conservative family who expected their son to be already married and popping out babies. Well the parents got a fake fiancée, and she got half a grand for a couple hours in pretending to know a stranger. Got a good meal from the gig as well. She got booked for the holiday season, took in several grand all-in-all.” Paige explained slowly as leaned towards the inching ever so closer companion who seemed enraptured with the discussion of the details of a paid girlfriend-role. 

Rey felt her mouth dry up as she mouthed the expected figure with her lips. Several grand, just to pretend to be a loving girlfriend to a couple of strangers and even get a hot meal for the day? Yes, that sounded like a good deal. 

“How would I even start?” The brunette asserted with blunt interest as she stared at her new source of Hope. 

“Well, I don’t know the exact details, I’ll have to ask her for that. But,” Paige said matter-of-factly, “I don’t think you’ll have too much trouble trying to rope I’m some clients. You’re young, cute and British to boot. There’s probably a line of suckers begging to make you their real girlfriend at the end of this.” The corresponding comment was punctuated with a friendly tap on the shoulder as the older girl smiled in assurance.

“Thanks.” Rey murmured into her mouth as she peeked at the time on her phone. She shorted her sigh, and flexed her shoulder muscles, “Break’s over.” 

“Hey, I’ll let my friend know you’re interested. She’s got the details on the whole business. I’ll send you the info when I can.”

“Thanks a lot Paige.” Rey maintained her appreciation as she soothed out her outfit and walked with her co-worker back to civilisation. 

Inwardly, Rey felt apprehensive at the details of the whole girlfriend-role but that money was hard to ignore. She didn’t have to fuck them right, just play nice and smile for a few hours? 

She could do that.

* * *

Work was not fun. She had lied to herself about the rest of the day as a breeze. It had not been, not with the spills, the temper tantrums from both kids and adults and the amount of forced pleasantries she had plastered on her face had hurt. At least not as much as her feet did.

The walk up her stairs was pure agony. Her feet screamed, her brain screamed and she was half-in thought that she should just yell her anger into the stairway well just to top-off her shitty day.

She should probably save her voice for tomorrow. Logistically she knew it was the better choice.

She settled for her anger to be dispersed into her cupped hands when she entered her apartment. She gave herself a minute to compose her mind and her bearings before she stood up where she had slumped against the doorway and threw her belongings onto a table. A hot shower would do magical things to her mood, and she had decided that she deserved such an occasion (no matter what her water bills would say about that). 

Ten minutes later, Rey emerged flushed and much more soothed in her soul. She wrapped a towel around her wet hair and scrubbed through the tangled tresses as she took a look at her phone. There was message sent from Paige.

Paige  
  
hey I asked my friend about the fake-girlfriend business  
  
and she said she used an online site, l'll link it after this. She said you should set-up  
  
a profile and fill out the questionnaire to get started. Good luck!  
  
www.girlfriend4hire.com

Her attention zeroed to the mentioned link. The website seemed to be quite straight-forward to explain what it proposed. Plain and simple. Something she had been described as completely encompassing in every inch of her five foot seven body.

Rey sighed deeply, like the breath was a hassle to pass through her lips. She rubbed her eyes as she squinted into the darkness and thought.

There had to be a ludicrous industry for fake girlfriends for the holidays. Just to show pesky families that yes, their child was doing fine and had a long-term girlfriend to show their superb stability in their current life. She could fill that mold, it would take some time for her to learn the necessary script (but she had done some time in the school play in her primary school back in England), so it wouldn’t be anything too out of her comfort-zone. She gnawed at her bottom-lip, her thoughts raced through loud and clear like fighter jets across a clear sky, and she squeezed her nails into the palm of her hand in short bursts as she settled herself.

Yes, she could do this. She just had to summon the some sort of invisible force to help her make the decision to sign her lead up to this scripted role of hers. She flirted with her hands across the keyboard and tapped into the website that had been mentioned before and clacked the **ENTER** key with a renewed surge of energy. 

The site loaded after a few beats - no thanks to her shoddy Internet provider - and it seemed more sleek than she expected. A simple UI Design, with free-flowing scrolled options fit for mobile use, bordered by options that linked to other parts of the site; all done in a sans-serif font that oozed professionalism. How a font had done that was beyond Rey’s comprehension, but she admired the appeal anyway. 

There was an **Introduction** of the site’s facilities, done in a monochromatic colour scheme that outlined the services the site offered. An interactive, reputable and engaging girlfriend experience for the user, that could be trusted to be discreet and effective for any sort of request (within ethical and legal reason). A link to the male counterpart; a boyfriend for hire was added to the end of the opening statement. 

Rey thumbed through the varying testimonials by _totally_ real and satisfied customers. It tasted a little over-the-top, like extra sugar sprinkled onto an already towered gelato bowl. She soldiered on.

There was a sign-up option, nestled between the **Scenarios** and the **Contact U** **s** options. With a final sigh, Rey resolved herself to this self-inflicted fate and she pressed down and waited for the new part of the site to load. 

She sighted empty boxes. Loads of them. The bold titles that hovered above each rectangle spoke of her **First Name,** **Surname** , her **Age** , her **Personal Contact** details of her **Number** and **Email,** little questions littered with scales from one to five about her experience, her comfortability levels she was willing to go do, was she **Sexually Active** , did she want **Short-term** or **Long-term** Clients, it carried on and on-

Rey closed her phone; she watched as the screen went black as she tried to avoid the bombardment of personal jabs that had been outlined in the questionnaire. There even had been a space to upload multiple selfie shots with requests for written responses or objects to be featured in the photos; undoubtedly done to weed out bots and catfishes that this service must have attracted. 

She had to ask herself, was _this_ worth it? Was selling her details, and her dignity really worth the hassle?

Rey scrutinized the couch she currently sat on. She missed the feeling of an actual mattress underneath her body at night; the strange contorted moves she made on the living room furniture had started to catch-up to her spine and her back ached more than it should as a young twenty-three year old woman. 

Okay, yes so she felt a little desperate by now. She chewed her lip and clicked her phone back to life. So be it. 

With resumed taps, Rey filled the details out, with a slight pause at the amount of money she wanted to aim for at fifty to a hundred dollars. ' _That didn’t sound too greedy since she just started_ ', her brain had justified at the double and triple digits. 

She submitted her form, and the box that popped up that read ‘ _Our quality services demand quality assurances from our company. We’ll review your application and contact you as soon as possible on a response. Thank you for understanding and have a great day.’_ made Rey huff. Guess it would have been too easy if she got into the business as easily as a finished form. 

In the second time through the span of the past ten minutes, the lonely brunette closed her phone and placed it on the nearest table. Her hands snatched up the quilt she had spread across the couch; a sandy brown material that felt more like a poodle’s butt than a cover where she snuggled underneath and wistfully dreamed about the money she didn’t have, and the bills that she did. 


	2. What's the gen?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so good to know people want this fic to continue. good, good, let the thirst flow thru you
> 
> side-note, i got no experience working in a cafe so i’m bsing all the interactions for hospitality, please don’t kill me if i get stuff wrong, its ~~~artistic license~~~

* * *

Rey crunched into the bacon and egg sandwich that Kaydel had placed into the former’s hand when the shift finished with a sympathetic look and whispered, _“It’s on me._ _Perks of being a manager. Get some good rest Rey.”_

The lethargic woman felt blessed to have such compassionate co-workers. She dug into the edible gift with a ferocious flare that in a blink, she had devoured half of the sandwich and let the infrequent mood of getting satisfied from her stomach being filled with delicious sustenance wash over her as she lounged on her make-shift bed. Her feet curled underneath the extra blankets she brought out from the closet, for the growing colder nights. 

The food budget had been tight this week (well, more accurately non-existent), and because she bounced through foster homes, she never quite learnt the necessary skills on how to cook good food. She could make an okay pasta, with supermarket sauce, topped with mushrooms and cheese when she could splurge a little extra. 

Too bad this was not the time where she could. So ramen with sprinkles of seaweed and a soft-boiled egg was the next best thing. A skill she picked up from Paige when she had met the older girl when they shared the same class years ago. A dash of soy sauce and she could almost delude herself that this was fine to eat on a daily basis. She ignored the thoughts of her sodium intake, out of sight, out of mind. 

God, she missed British healthcare. 

She was one stomach-bug away from being considered dangerously underweight. 

A stray dribble of Barbecue sauce slid down her hand and without a second thought, Rey followed the trail with her tongue. 

No wastage in this household she affirmed as she snuck the crumbs from the Deli paper wrap onto her thumb as a vehicle to her hungry mouth.

Rey bemoaned the end of the sandwich a few bites later as she looked down to the empty brown bag, only to lick away the splatter of sauce on the side of her hand. Kriffing hell, it wasn’t like she shared her apartment with anyone. If she wanted to eat like an animal, she thought she deserved to do so in the comfort of her own home. 

As she got up to dispose of her meal, she took a detour to the bathroom to wash her hands off for the next activity. She rummaged around in her bathroom drawers before she picked up a metal tin and retrieved her work pants that had been thrown on a chair - already decorated with her other (hopefully not dirty) clothes. 

With well-versed hands and practice, Rey began to add another slit for the pant’s button to slide into. It had been the second-time she had to do so for these particular trousers because she had found them loosened ever since her food budget had run dry. 

_Again_. One flu away from getting the need to drop an entire pant-size. 

She couldn’t afford that.

Rey found the activity methodical and easy to let herself steady her as she pushed away the constricting thoughts of what the upcoming struggles to find the money needed to keep a roof over her head. Her fingers threaded through the material of the pants as she popped the finished button through with a relieved exhale. 

_‘Help will be with you’_ , a quiet voice said, one that followed her at her darkest times when she was younger, hungrier and more desperate.

_‘Always.’_

* * *

Rey forced the top of her hand; the long skin across the side of her index which met her thumb in a curve, against her nose. She squinted involuntarily as it passed through her even though she had tried so hard throughout the last minute to squash the actions.

_“Ah--choo!”_

“Bless you.” Someone said in the background.

“Thanks.” Rey muttered as she sneaked a nearby tissue and wiped up the saliva spat out during her sneeze session. 

“You warm enough at night?” The same voice asked.

“Probably not.” Rey intoned as she turned back to face the mischievous voice. 

“No warm-body to keep yourself snug yet?” Kaydel voiced as the blonde snuck around to grab something behind Rey; a cling-wrapped banana bread, beautifully browned and soft like a cushion. 

“No. But I’m wearing more layers at night.” The brunette replied back as she glanced at the mess made on the marble table. 

Rey used a wet chuck to wipe the spilt milk and crumbs on the bench, her hand swept the debris into a bin in one quick movement as she rested her attention on clock that ticked on the wall adjacent to the counter. A few more hours and she would be done where she could rest with a hot cup of cocoa topped with a few tiny fluffy marshmallows in the comforts of her tiny home. 

Another wave of sickly holiday concoctions wafted underneath her nose made her wince - okay, maybe not the marshmallows. She might pull out the hot-water bottle for tonight, just to keep herself warmed up through the night. 

“Holdo. What’s the VRM coming down here for?” Kaydel exclaimed as the bell dinged and an older woman with noticeable purple hair tied in a bun with loose locks strayed from her temples appeared through the door. There was a tight-lipped line dipped in a light pink colour that hardly smudged as her mouth moved to mutter at something on her phone. 

Rey looked down at her uniform while she waited, as she roughly catalogued the cafe’s policy on employee appearance. She had the work-issued red apron (which was devoid of any discernible messes - a feat in itself since she was often allocated the drink station as she was the efficient person in a clinch), and her brown hair was braided down her neck as designated by hospitality hygiene regulations, and her crisp black shirt and pants were clean and presentable. It seemed like Amylin Holdo - the acting Regional Manager of the franchise dropped at an impromptu visit since Kaydel didn’t seem fazed at all. 

“Some stock got lost in transportation. And by stock, I mean the holiday cups with the new logo, which was at least twenty-boxes of worth that ended up at another base. It’ll take another few days to get them here.”Amilyn Holdo described as she stopped at the counter and pocketed her device in her sleek black bag that probably was valued at more than everything Rey owned, and waved a manicured hand in a circular motion, “It’s a bit of a mess at the other section, we’ve had to close down temporarily for maintenance.”

“Well that’s not good news.” Kaydel commented dryly. “How do you want us to deal with the fact we’re going to run out of cups by today?

“We’re hoping to release some social media promotions for customers to bring their own cups until we get our refreshed stock. Try to encourage dine-ins when you can.” Amilyn added as she tapped the small cup sample near the register. “And, we’re doing something a little out of the ordinary while we wait. I’ve got a shipment of plain cups and a collection of ink and stamps.”

“Ink?” Rey uttered, confusion heightened by the rise of one brown brow. 

“Stamps?” Kaydel latched on with a smile. “No way. You want us to make our own coffee cups?”

“Is that legal?” Rey asked and gave a cursory look at how excited her partner-on-counter looked.

“I think it’ll be the best option with what we’re working with. Something nice for the festive season.” The older woman gave a pointed stare at the two younger ladies. “I’ll shouldn’t have to tell you, but nothing rude or obscene on the cups please.”

“Of course Holdo. We’ll be good. We promise.” Kaydel said with unbridled excitement.

“Carry on ladies.” Amilyn said, and paused in-thought as she remembered something. “Don’t worry, we’ll be paying you for the extra work. I’ll send an email on the exact rates to all the employees later today.”

“Aye Aye Captain.” Kaydel lazily remarked as she did a mock salute, with a wrinkle lined across the VRM’s forehead as the only acceptable response for such a casual interaction. 

_“Lieutenant._ ” The older lady quipped back with an abated smile, “Do your best everyone.”

As the magic evaporated with the departure of the amused and fashionable Vice Regional Manager, the shop swung back into business as people appeared, seemingly out of thin air and queued up to order during the lunch-rush. 

Rey found herself deep into the drinks, as her hands mixed cappuccinos, lattes, decaf mochas and consistently hot teas with sprinkles of full-cream milk, almond milk or a splash of soy from their dwindling stock of coffee cups. 

A lull washed over at around two P.M. 

“You good to finish up in an hour Rey?” Kaydel asked kindly as she began to move the boxes of plain white coffee cups that had been delivered. “If you need a ride, I’ll drive a few boxes to your place on the way home.”

“That would be fantastic.” Rey replied most graciously, “I don’t think I’ll have much transporting this many on the bus. Thanks Kaydel.”

“No problem.” The blonde woman cooed as she picked up a box to settle back in the storeroom. “So I want to confirm if what Paige said that you were interested in being a fake-girlfriend for some money?”

Rey swallowed demurely, and glanced at the awaiting expression displayed on the curious co-worker’s face as the brunette grasped her own heavy box to take home. “Yeah. Paige mentioned her friend made a good amount of money in a small-amount of time. And it doesn’t seem too hard to do.”

“Hah. Go get it girl. I’m not judging you.” Kaydel smarted a smirk as she walked with brisk steps that made the contents of her container clatter together as the coffee cups moved with the momentum. “Get paid to pretend to get laid.”

 _'Oh God_ ,’ Rey thought, _‘I’m going to be an emotional prostitute._ ’ 

* * *

Rey found herself plastered front faced into her couch. She realised she did this a lot the past few days. 

When she lifted her head, she eyed the cardboard that held all the bare cups that waited for her artistic touch. 

She snorted as she took an analytical glance at her knuckles and cuticles, around her palm where callouses had made home on skin years ago when she had been younger and in even more desperate and dire situations to scrap for shelter and safety. There still laid the remnants of ink she had tried to scrub off in the shower; muted pinks and softened grass green that splotched in swipes around the tips of her fingers and underneath her nails where the pens had bled onto. 

By the time she finished her decadent shower, she had finished one box stacked with friendly messages scribbled on in cursive words and stamped images of red and green reindeers and bells, which Paige said that she would drive over and pick up the rest, the next morning.

A buzz on her phone alerted her of a new notification to her phone. A light tap on the screen opened up a fresh email, one addressed to her specifically from the sender **‘Girlfriend4Hire’.**

Rey speedily opened the message and waited for the news - whether it be good or bad. 

_'Make it quick_ ’, she thought, _‘take me out of my misery’._

From: [www.girlfriend4hirecustomerservice.com]

Subject: [Application Review of Girlfriend role: N0AB15Y]

To: [Rey@Jakku.com]

To Miss Rey,

After reviewing your submitted form on December 5th 20XX, Girlfriend4hire humbly accepts your application to our service as a contract employee. We welcome you to a company that prides itself in presenting top-quality individuals who can make a genuine and enjoyable experience for our special clients. Sensitivity Training will be sent to you to be completed before you can commerce taking requests.

Further information of your experiences will help to customise your qualifications and type of jobs you can be allowed to partake in. This will include details on your professional and personal experience in establishing interpersonal relationships which are the heart of the success of this company. Please read the Terms and Conditions for the legal procedures of company policy you will follow when in contract with us. Please contact us whenever you have an issue or inquiry you will like to make, at this email: www.girlfriend4hirecustomerservice.com with your Username and ticket number.

The words flooded her brain as she soaked in the news that had been passed to her.

Well, that was certainly good news.

Rey muffled the squeal with her fist. _Yes_. There was the extra income she had desired desperately finally opened up to her.

She logged on with the sent information, a randomly generated PASSWORD: EX35GOABYOL and her USERNAME: Rey_N0_1. A brand-new account faced her, one with her details added in with space for more potential for a more in-depth of her profile to appeal to these strange men. An option for a widened audience to include female clients had been offered further down the form, which Rey tossed between whether to tick. In the end, she decided not to, just to make sure she didn’t do anything stupid. 

Not that she thought the whole set-up wasn’t already strange enough. 

The young woman added more bread crumbs of her life, more formal photos with different angles of her face and body. It felt invasive, clinical and mildly unsettling. She entered more likes and dislikes to the empty boxes, _‘Yes to warm weather, animals and high-cardio exercise’_ and ‘N _o to cold weather, flowers and violent state-enforced organisations’._ Sensitivity training was a boring but an important document that outlined the privacy of the exercise. Clients should only initiate contacts through email, and messaging through phone was up the employee to use. Protocol meant that employees were expected to keep a low to non-existent social media profile, as to protect the service from unconvinced relatives or friends. An emphasis on how to separate the business from the pleasure was highlighted throughout the attached document. If an exclusive contract would be imminent, it would be highly recommended that the client inform the company of the situation and either cancel or freeze their account until such an occasion passed over.

She thought the whole thing was a little bogus (and mildly concerning) because yes, duh, if you actually found a partner on the site, you wouldn't do very well to pretend to date other people (unless the partner was fine with that, she wasn't here to judge). She skimmed through the dredges of the legal jargon and ticked the boxes that determined she read and understood the TOS.

As she pressed **SUBMIT,** Ret let herself imagine the type of requests placed on the bulletin board. The new part of the site loaded, and the brunette did a few breathing exercises as she swiped through the potential candidates. 

### Job Bulletin

##### Please be aware that jobs have a 24 hour expiration date before they disappear completely. For every completed 'date', a review from the client will allow the employee to expand their price-range and options for jobs. All reviews will be looked over by our experts for legitimacy before being published. Please take the utmost care to read through each request, as once a client has accepted, you cannot withdraw without contacting the customer service-line and paying a penalty-fee.

  * [Bar Date - $45 - 2 hours - Mandalore] by someone called Boba



(‘ _Like the drink?_ ’ Rey snorted.)

  * [Concert Date - $60 - 4 hours - Naboo Hall] from the alias D.J.J.B



(‘ _Deejaybee,_ ’ Rey read off with confusion.)

  * [+1 to Wedding Crasher event - $70 - 1 hour - Classified] uploaded by Bane



(' _Classified huh, that sounded dodgy,_ ’ Rey clicked her tongue in displeasure.)

  * [Movie Date + dinner - $75 - 3 hours - D’Qar] submitted by Snap



( _Only one bus ride from her home_ ,’ Rey murmured in the emptiness of the room.)

The young woman took a moment to ponder on her options; one elbow rested on her knee while the other cradled her chin. She switched her screen so she could look up the locations established in the requests through the HoloNet and mapped out the public transport options for each place. If she compared the Net income per hour with factors like transport, paid-time, and added in the social costs of dealing with the client through the amount of energy and effort required in each activity then…

The movie date and dinner sounded like the best option. She didn’t have to invest that much interest in her ‘date’ if worse came to worst. With her mind made-up, Rey clicked the ACCEPT button and watched the loading logo of a winged symbol that rose to mirror the increasing percentage plastered on her phone. 

Information littered her display, various attributes to the so-called hire would entail. The movie would start at five-thirty P.M sharp, some popular movie from an established studio. Rey wrinkled her nose at the brightly-coloured movie poster as she typed the title in her search-bar. She might as well have the phrase ‘Country Bumpkin’ tattooed on her forehead from her absence of popular culture in her repertoire. It seemed to be a live-action version of a famous game that she didn’t recognise one-bit. 

She was going to be an awful date already. She could feel it as the feeling rattled through her bones.

Dinner was to be casual dining experience. Apparently the client was to be part of a big group outing. Nothing in the description made her frightened, especially when the consideration this was her first gig was to be factored in the equation. 

The biography of said client seemed to be approachable enough; self-proclaimed heavy-set man with an adventurous appetite, with an interest in supporting kids with epilepsy through charity events, and proud-collector of wacky ties. Yes, so rather harmless. 

Rey let herself languidly fantasise about the type of food that would be supplied. 

Maybe burgers? 

Or pizza at the end of the movie?

Whatever it was, Rey would look forward to being fed at the end of a long day. She had an early morning shift on the morning of the scheduled date in the next two days. If she swung home with an early bus, she should have enough time for a quick shower, some breaths to put some minor make-up on and change her clothes for showtime. She greedily tapped on the **CONTACT CLIENT** button on the bottom right of the page and waited for feedback. A pop-up with text appeared and flooded her screen. 

We have connected your interest to the selected client. Please be aware that the client will review your profile and accept or reject to their discretion. No harassment is warranted from any parties, and any conduct that violates the Terms of Conditions will result in an immediate deletion of your account. Please proceed with caution. Happy fake-dating!’

It made her grit her teeth. Standard procedure that things would take their time to resolve on the other party’s end. She hoped that this ‘Snap’ dude would be fine with her interests and appearance enough to welcome her presence on this group outing.

With more masochistic intention than logical self-preservation, Rey checked her online banking account.

And promptly exited after she saw the decimals on her screen. _Kriff._

At least the coffee cup kerfuffle meant that she had some extra money en route to her account on-top of her hours she did during the week, which allowed her to squeeze enough dough to easily cover the water and electricity bills. 

Still, there was rent to be made.

The definite perk of no roommate which allowed her to come and go, dump her dishes into the sink, and make a mess on the ground and furniture definitely came in-handy when she was short on time, but did no good when she was short on moolah. 

_‘Miracle’_ , Rey thought exasperatedly. _'I need a damn Christmas miracle.'_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> patience you must have, my young padawan for ben's appearance

**Author's Note:**

> rey's gonna bone ben’s pretty ass, don’tcha worry


End file.
